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The world is at a standstill. With cases of the coronavirus continuing to increase and federal mandates to self-quarantine still in place, a sense of fear and uncertainty has crept into the zeitgeist, overwhelmingly affecting the economy. All forms of commerce have seen a steep decline—the fashion industry being one of them.
According to a report published by Fast Company, apparel sales have plummeted by 50 percent. It’s a margin that will be difficult to recover from, especially for small businesses that don’t have the backing of major conglomerates. These independent companies rely on seasonal buys from retailers to stay afloat. But with the bevy of store closures and restrictions on online sales, these behemoth retailers are facing hard times of their own.
“Consumers are actually spending more on essential goods: Grocery stores saw a 26.9% increase in spending and health stores saw a 4.3% increase,” FC found. “This is partly because these are the only brick-and-mortar stores that are allowed to remain open right now, but it is also because consumers are worried about spending money unnecessarily with a significant recession looming on the horizon.”
Fashion and accessories brands that have flourishing e-commerce sites have a better chance of circumventing this downturn, but that doesn’t count the fact that the masses are not comfortable spending their hard-earned dollars or feeble government bailouts on nonessential items. “People are going to put their stimulus checks toward essential goods, like groceries and credit card payments,” said Andrew Lipsman, an analyst at market research firm eMarketer. “They won’t be buying new clothes.”
As a result, countless retailers and labels with direct-to-consumer platforms have been offering deals to woo consumers and entice them to spend. These are the businesses that will withstand this steady deterioration, having accumulated financial reserves and investing in digital sales from the onset. Still, the long-term repercussions are tough to overcome. The fashion industry has been greatly affected by the pervasive disease, and only the fittest will survive.
“We don’t expect things to be normal for at least a year, perhaps longer,” said Jordan Elkind, vice president of product marketing at Amperity, a company that analyzes customer data for brands. “Some brands will just not be able to make it through this period of extended decline in sales.”
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